In our discussions of Cabeza de Vaca’s text we have spent a lot of time discussing how it portrays Native Americans and how much confidence we can place in these portrayals.
Coming out of class on Wednesday, your first essay will require you to take a stand on this matter. Essentially, does Vaca use these scenes (which may/may not have happened) to play on the sympathies of readers past and present, or do you think he makes a genuine effort to demonstrate a kind of common humanity among Native Americans and non-Natives? You are encouraged to explore this question in a nuanced way, and you may argue that “both” are the case if you’d like.
Remember to cite directly from the text in your argument, as well as to include at least one critical source not read from class in your paper. You should feel free to also include the sources from the Norton anthology.
Final paper should be 2-4 pages in length, with a separate Work Cited page. This is due 9/28.